Usability 101: Introduction to Usability
Source Article: www.useit.com/alertbox/20030825.html
No matter what the business, a web site is really all about one thing - the visitor. In other words, anybody who visits the site needs to be welcomed and guided through whatever process they need. Sometimes this user knows their objective well and can find it, sometimes they've stumbled upon the site merely by a stroke of luck. Sometimes, there is no other choice of websites such as when paying a bill. Most of the time, however, there are thousands of other websites the user could switch to and many of those have the same basic content.
The job of a web designer is to make sure that the web site catches the visitors attention, draws him into the content, leads him to whatever he needs to do with extreme ease, and leaves them with a feeling of time well spent. This is based off of many things. For instance, how easy is it to learn the site's navigation? How quickly can the below average user perform tasks and how likely is it that he will remember how to do it next time? How likely is the user to commit an error? How bad will that error be? The final question is in regards to how pleasant the design is. All of these questions come together to help define a websites usability.
Usability is incredibly important. Just think. Websites are created by nerds like me that know their way around a computer better than their own home. Websites are used by mothers and fathers who didn't notice the use of a computer until a couple of years ago. They need to be able to understand it. If they don't, they will leave. At the first sign of difficulty, they will flee. There are far too many sites to struggle with just one.
To develop and improve usability, websites must be tested by outside sources. This can be as simple as watching someone try to complete a task while keeping notes in a notebook or as complex as having a usability lab monitoring several people's actions on your site. These observations include everything from where the people struggle to where their mouse lingers on the screen. Usually, each test only needs to be ran by about five people. This should be done at every stage of the game to avoid major complications in the end.
In essence, usability can single handedly define or destroy your website. It is worth your time and money.
